Cúron Arandir
Cúron Arandir, The Rampant Stag of Kaelin Known Information Cúron Arandir is a renowned Effendal warrior and military leader who joined The Returned in Solace in September of the second year of Adelrune after having been tortured and killed by a squad of Inquisitors. Nicknamed "Mankiller" by humans for his penchant for hunting and eliminating the human threat on Tear, The Rampant Stag was much celebrated by the local Effendal tribes in his Return. Prior to death, Cúron had held a position of prominence within Effendal noble circles and was in the Top Ten ranked of House Kaelin, where he had earned the title "The Rampant Stag of Kaelin." Tensions were high with the Humans in Solace at the time of Cúron's Return, however, and he sacrificed his noble title and rank within Effendal society in order to secure a peace accord with them. It was as part of this arrangement that the Celestine detachment on Tear insisted that Solace institute the current political system, which created the Council of Five and mandated that Solace follow the Rules of Society. Since then, Cúron has served two consecutive terms on the Council of Solace; first as an Effendal representative, and then as the military head. As Effendal representative, he was instrumental in swaying the opinions of the local Effendal tribes who sought conflict with the humans of Solace and redirecting their energy towards more Solace-friendly goals. As the Lord General, he handled the formation of the first Town Guard and the Army of Solace. After retiring from Solace governance, Cúron disappeared from the public eye in pursuit of unknown goals. In the early days of Solace, Cúron Arandir came into possession of a unique blade from Eden's Realm, and during his tenure as Lord General he received Eden's Mark after dying in a particularly gruesome battle. In the year 6r Arandir emerged as a Death Knight and served Eden for four years. He was the first Returned to become a Death Knight, and would later induct several other Returned into this order. Notable servants of Eden such as Leucraven and Sir Rhode have been seen in familiar conversation with him. In the year 9r, Arandir killed Hakkon, champion of Deroan the Bone Child, in a duel in the midst of battle as Hakkon led undead to kill Palau of House Ra'el'en. In February of 10r, after the sealing of the Spirit Rift, Arandir declared his Oaths of service to Eden to be completed. Eden's word on the matter remains unclear. Cúron Arandir is currently on his second squire after his first, Sky'elen, was tortured to death by the Nadine Legion and subsequently disappeared from public life. His current squire, Da'fen Vehnan of the Vol'faer Tribe, made her oaths to House Arandir in the year 9r. He is particularly protective of his squire, going so far as to hunt, apprehend, murder, and murder for a second time a Returned assassin who had struck down Vehnan. It is said that Arandir leads his own organized efforts to face many of the problems on Tear, but the public participants in this are unknown. Notably, Arandir presented magical carrot and squash seeds to Unity on behalf of his household to help ease the famine in the wake of the war against Bel'e'athru. Cúron is known to be a powerful Warder and Diviner, as well as a skilled Fletcher. He is known to sell these services to the Returned, accumulating a significant amount of wealth. Despite this, he claims to have little understanding of money. Status The Rampant Stag holds status as a Vapaaherra of House Kaelin. Having retired after serving two terms on Council, Arandir was awarded three pins of status in Solace as the head of Solace's House Arandir. The recognition of these pins under Unity is presently undetermined. Arandir formally renounced this status in March of 10r. Arandir held four pins of status as a Temple Knight of Eden, more commonly referred to as a Death Knight. After declaring his oaths to Eden fulfilled in February of 10r, he relinquished the pins and honors afforded to him. Allies * Ritari Corvus Vorin, the Iron Crow of Myros * Siili Sininen, the Keen Eye of Terra and Delfestrae * Mieletassa Eluriel * Da'Fen Vehnan (his squire) * Ritari Arahnorui Ephelhador, the Glittering Blade of Kaelin * Laurel Bay * Æsa * Aidhrael, the Sword of Reckoning * The Effendal Houses and Tribes of Tear, but most notably Kaelin and Volfa'er. Enemies * Humans, especially those on Tear * The Inquisition * The Shrike, her daughter, and the Nadine Legions Rumors * It has been rumored that Cúron is a devotee of Thte, a warrior god of the Old Ways. * Dans Swordmaker was almost responsible for the death of Cúron. He left him to die when he was wounded and bleeding out. * A local legend suggests that Cúron served as inspiration for the romantic lead in a series of pulp plays about star-crossed lovers. Strangely, no copies have been able to be located since his Return. * It is rumored that Cúron once tried to murder the father of Euridice, although their close friendship belies this rumor. * "He's killed again. His arrow was found on another human body to the north. One shot, poisoned, and through the throat. The human wasn't even able to scream, but died slowly all the same." * There were rumors that Cúron had left behind a wife and child after his death. This could explain his fondness for the Effendal child, Skye'elen. * Curon is jealous of humans. * Curon misses Cedric. * Because he wanted to kill him. * Not because he liked him. * He knits sweaters for imps * His title "The Rampant Stag" did not come from House Kaelin, but from his time working at a certain floating brothel near Port Frey in his early days as a Returned. * Curon has slapped at least 50 Returned humans. * It is rumored that his squire is intended to be his greatest sacrifice to Eden for more power. * A human asked Cúron to "make it rain." Instead of money, the human received a hail of arrows. * Voted least likely to drop a mix tape. * Lord Of The Spice. Solace's spiciest boi. * Rumor has it, Curons tastebuds cannot detect anything but the spiciest of peppers * Arandir is V * Rumor has it, Arandir is The Bone Child's father, but often blames it on Chorus to throw people off. * "Cúron was young and the Shrike seemed lonely, ok?" "The Shrike keeps coming up Tear because she can't let the one-time hookup go." * Rumor has it Arandir's request at Fae Court was just for show. He and the Fae have been working together for years, and he had their assistance secured before he submitted to Eden in the first place. * Rumor has it, that Arandir can kill a man with his titles alone *Rumor has it that, when the sun is high, he transforms into Púrron Nyarandir and takes naps in the sunbeams. This is the only time that he is vulnerable to assassination. *Rumor has it that Ayan's cat is a rambunctious platypus. *His furball alone is able to pin the Shrike in place for a year Quotes "Gwanath ava dar i acharn in Effendal, ar ava dîn i laer cûm." Death will not stay the vengeance of the Effendal, nor will it silence the song of our bows. "The hearts of men are easily corrupted. I cannot place my ultimate trust in them." Character Inspirations * Legolas Greenleaf (Lord of the Rings) * Aragorn II, Son of Arathorn (Lord of the Rings) * Elrond Half-elven (Lord of the Rings) * Qhorin Halfhand (A Song of Ice and Fire) * al'Lan Mandragoran (Wheel of Time) Soundtrack * Aniron (Enya, for LoTR) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMyo8I8AKmY * Oro Se do Bheatha Bhaile (Irish trad, performed by Sinead O'Connor) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Sje2VYw99A * I Am Stretched on Your Grave (Irish trad, performed by Kate Rusby) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtPDPC8mJGU